1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a scheme for accessing data management directory. More particularly, the present invention relates to directory utilizing technology which is capable of achieving easy and flexible data access, which are managed by substantial directories of respective applications, so as to attain high level utilization of the substantial directories, by constructing substantial directories which sort and manage the location of data (contents) accumulated on the network and access information for the data, independently from applications and then sharing and integrating a group of these substantial directories to show directory structures which are easy to utilize for individual applications.
2. Description of the Background Art
In recent years, data (contents) accumulated on the network go on increasing.
The location of data and access information on the network are sorted and managed by the directory. According to the provisions of X.500, the directory means a system or a service which saves systematically various information of communication and is utilized commonly a large number of users. More particularly, the directory is the sorting tree which connects the data serving as nodes by the hierarchical tree structure to manage them. For example, the data (contents) in the particular fields such as address, map, eating place, lodging facilities, etc. on the network such as the Internet are sorted and managed by the directories such as address directory, map directory, eating place directory, lodging facilities directory, etc. respectively.
However, in the directory accessing approach in the conventional art, there are problems described in the following. That is, the directory which manages the location of the data accumulated on the network and the access information is constructed to be bound to individual applications. Thus, since there exists no basic distributing basis of the data which are managed by these directories, the access to such data is limited to the particular applications. Therefore, it is difficult to share the directories in a plurality of applications in order to refer the location of the data which are managed by the directories, or integrate data management information of a plurality of directories. For example, a directory type information guidance service for managing URLs of the multimedia contents is provided in many directory type search sites on the Internet. However, only the information offering service which is effected by the local directory available for only the particular individual system (application) is provided individually in these sites. In other words, since the directory and the application are constructed as the integrated form, it is difficult to employ transversely and integratedly in plural sites both the directories being provided by individual services and the data being managed by these directories. While, for the purpose of facilitation of the load distribution of the data processing and the backup at the time of data fault, the technique of constructing the copy of the directories and splitting the directory tree structure into a plurality of partial tree structures has been known, but the directory structure per se cannot be changed by this technology.
Essentially, for the purpose of common use in many users, the directories and the data being managed in the directories save the information systematically for various purposes, nevertheless the directories which are easily available in response to the purpose for individual applications have not been provided.
In addition, a hierarchical structure of the original directory information is needed in order to utilize the data in a plurality of sites integrally, and thus the hierarchical structure and the information contained therein must be integrated together while keeping this hierarchical structure. However, in the conventional art, necessary information is acquired from the directories having the hierarchical structure only as the set of flat values.
The present invention has been made to overcome the above problems in the conventional art. It is an object of the present invention to provide a scheme for accessing data management directory, which is capable of constructing the directories, which sort and manage the location of data accumulated on the network and access information, independently from applications and also achieving an easy and flexible access to data which are managed by the actual (substantial) directories from respective applications for the various purposes, by providing a view function for showing actual directories as directory structures which are easy for individual applications to utilize by sharing, dividing and integrating the actual directories.
In other words, the present invention provides a scheme for accessing data management directory which provides a virtual directory hierarchical structure which is customized every application, e.g., (1) to extract the only data, which are requested by the application, from the substantial directories, (2) to simplify the manipulation of the related information between a plurality of directories, (3) to conceal the directory hierarchies, which are out of the search scope, for the purpose of the security protection, etc.
View function for the directory can be implemented by view directory generated by carrying out various set operations using the relational algebra with respect to one or plural substantial directories to be manipulated in class unit, entry unit and attribute unit.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of accessing a substantial directory for sorting and managing data, comprising the steps of: (a) inputting a view search instruction for manipulating data, which is defined by a combination of arbitrary class and attribute requested by an application; (b) translating the view search instruction into a directory manipulation instruction for manipulating one or a plurality of substantial directories according to a prescribed view definition; (c) extracting entries from the substantial directories using the directory manipulation instruction to derive an entry set; and (d) generating a customized directory corresponding to the view search instruction of the application according to a combination of the class and the attribute as a result of a set operation, by applying the set operation defined in the view definition to the entry set.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of accessing a substantial directory for sorting and managing data which joins entries which stores sets of attribute types and attribute values as a tree structure based on a structure of an object class, comprising the steps of: (aa) generating a view definition in which a view definition identifier is attached to a directory manipulation syntax which contains at least a directory manipulation word specifying one or a plurality of set operations, and class and attribute of the substantial directories as a manipulation object; (bb) storing a generated view definition in a view definition set; (cc) inputting a view search instruction for manipulating data, which is defined by a combination of arbitrary class and attribute requested by an application; (dd) specifying a directory manipulation syntax having the view definition identifier described in the view search instruction from the view definition set, and translating the view search instruction into a directory manipulation instruction which acquires collectively attribute values of entry sets requested by the view search instruction by manipulating one or a plurality of substantial directories; (ee) translating the directory manipulation into an entry unit manipulation instruction for manipulating the substantial directories in entry unit; (ff) extracting entries from the substantial directories using the entry unit manipulation instruction to derive an entry set as a batch directory manipulation result and generating a directory set operation instruction including the entry set and a set operation defined by the view definition; and (gg) generating a customized directory corresponding to the view search instruction of the application according to a combination of the class and the attribute as a result of the set operation by executing the directory set operation instruction.
According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for accessing a substantial directory for sorting and managing data, comprising: (a) a unit for inputting a view search instruction for manipulating data, which is defined by a combination of arbitrary class and attribute requested by an application; (b) a unit for translating the view search instruction into a directory manipulation instruction for manipulating one or a plurality of substantial directories according to a prescribed view definition; (c) a unit for extracting entries from the substantial directories using the directory manipulation instruction to derive an entry set; and (d) a unit for generating a customized directory corresponding to the view search instruction of the application according to a combination of the class and the attribute as a result of a set operation, by applying the set operation defined in the view definition to the entry set.
According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an system for accessing a substantial directory for sorting and managing data which joins entries which stores sets of attribute types and attribute values as a tree structure based on a structure of an object class, comprising: (aa) a unit for generating a view definition in which a view definition identifier is attached to a directory manipulation syntax which contains at least a directory manipulation word specifying one or a plurality of set operations, and class and attribute of the substantial directories as a manipulation object; (bb) a unit for storing a generated view definition in a view definition set; (cc) a unit for inputting a view search instruction for manipulating data, which is defined by a combination of any class and attribute requested by an application; (dd) a unit for specifying a directory manipulation syntax having the view definition identifier described in the view search instruction from the view definition set and translating the view search instruction into a directory manipulation instruction which acquires collectively attribute values of entry sets requested by the view search instruction, by manipulating one or a plurality of substantial directories; (ee) a unit for translating the directory manipulation instruction into an entry unit manipulation instruction for manipulating the substantial directories in entry unit; (ff) a unit for extracting entries from the substantial directories using the entry unit manipulation instruction to derive an entry set as a batch directory manipulation result and generating a directory set operation instruction including the entry set and a set operation defined by the view definition; and (gg) a unit for generating a customized directory corresponding to the view search instruction of the application according to a combination of the class and the attribute as a result of the set operation by executing the directory set operation instruction.
According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer-readable recording medium for causing a computer to execute a processing for accessing a substantial directory for sorting and managing data, the processing including: (a) a process for inputting a view search instruction for manipulating data, which is defined by a combination of any class and attribute requested by an application; (b) a process for translating the view search instruction into a directory manipulation instruction for manipulating one or a plurality of substantial directories according to a prescribed view definition; (c) a process for extracting entries from the substantial directories using the directory manipulation instruction to derive an entry set; and (d) a process for generating a customized directory corresponding to the view search instruction of the application according to a combination of the class and the attribute as a result of a set operation, by applying the set operation defined in the view definition to the entry set.
According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer-readable recording medium for causing a computer to execute a processing for accessing a substantial directory for sorting and managing data which joins entries which stores sets of attribute types and attribute values as a tree structure based on a structure of an object class, the processing including: (aa) a process for generating a view definition in which a view definition identifier is attached to a directory manipulation syntax which contains at least a directory manipulation word specifying one or a plurality of set operations, and class and attribute of the substantial directories as a manipulation object; (bb) a process for storing a generated view definition in a view definition set; (cc) a process for inputting a view search instruction for manipulating data, which is defined by a combination of arbitrary class and attribute requested by an application; (dd) a process for specifying a directory manipulation syntax having the view definition identifier described in the view search instruction from the view definition set and translating the view search instruction into a directory manipulation instruction which acquires collectively attribute values of entry sets requested by the view search instruction, by manipulating one or a plurality of substantial directories; (ee) a process for translating the directory manipulation instruction into an entry unit manipulation instruction for manipulating the substantial directories in entry unit; (ff) a process for extracting entries from the substantial directories using the entry unit manipulation instruction to derive an entry set as a batch directory manipulation result and generating a directory set operation instruction including the entry set and a set operation defined by the view definition; and (gg) a process for generating a customized directory corresponding to the view search instruction of the application according to a combination of the class and the attribute as a result of the set operation by executing the directory set operation instruction.